Memphis looks for answers after exiting
MEMPHIS — For the fifth straight year, the Memphis Grizzlies have come up short of the NBA championship they want so badly.
After losing to the Warriors in six games in the Western Conference semifinals, they head into another offseason looking for the same thing to help them go further — better outside shooting.
But first, the Grizzlies have to persuade All-Star center Marc Gasol that Memphis is where he should stay and not go to the free-agent market. Gasol planned to consider his options this offseason, which arrived Friday night when the Warriors beat the Grizzlies 108-95.
“I haven’t even spent a second thinking of that,” Gasol said. “I’m drained right now.”
Gasol has become an integral part of Memphis’ most successful five years in franchise history, along with Zach Randolph, point guard Mike Conley and defensive whiz Tony Allen. Randolph is under contract for two more seasons, and he said Gasol is like a brother.
“Like I told him: ‘I love you, man. You know where I want you at. And whatever makes you happy,’ ” Randolph said of Gasol’s pending decision.
Allen says Gasol knows this organization and all the Grizzlies. He sees the 7-foot-1 center from Spain as a big part of Memphis’ success.
“If I had to guess, I would say” Gasol stays, Allen said. “But you know, it’s a business, and I understand everything about it, and you have to do what’s best for him and his family.”
Gasol certainly did his best to keep Memphis alive for another game, scoring 21 points, grabbing 15 rebounds and blocking five shots. He also had four assists.
But for a third straight game, Golden State managed to flood the paint with an extra defender and harassed Memphis into another poor shooting performance inside. The Grizzlies couldn’t back anyone out as MVP Stephen Curry wound up hitting more three-pointers (26) than the Grizzlies managed in the six-game series (25).
“Basically, they just jammed it up and dared us to shoot it from the perimeter,” head coach Dave Joerger said. “Not just one guy, but they dared all of our guys.”
That left Memphis losing in the conference semifinals for second time since 2011, a painful loss for a franchise that won at least 50 games for a third straight season.
“First round, second round, the Finals, whatever,” Randolph said. “If you don’t win that ring, it’s always a disappointment.”
Both Randolph and Conley said the Grizzlies need to add just a few players to help spread the floor. The Grizzlies ranked second in the percentage of points from two-point range but only 29th in that category outside the arc. Conley said they have to play through their strengths in their big men.
“We can’t change that,” Conley said. “We just have to work with what we have. We’ve done a phenomenal job with it, but I think us going into next season, we have to find ways to free up guys on the outside, get guys (who) can get easy looks, try to open up and knock them down and get more opportunities for our big guys.”